This test is divided into five sections, each designed to investigate a different dimension of your memory. The sections that follow mirror the five sections of the test, and will train you in the skills needed for each of them.

Have a timer to hand, and do your best not to cheat. You will have a short while to study each of the challenges on the questions PDF below, and a set amount of time to recall the answers on the printable answer sheet below. Fill in your results as you go along. Once you complete the test, you can tot up your answers and uncover your strengths and weaknesses .

1: Visual memory

Your first challenge is to remember these 16 "hobo signs" (symbols used by migrant workers in the US to communicate secretly with each other). You have two minutes to learn the appearance of these signs, and two minutes to draw them from memory . You get one point for each correct symbol, with half a point for any near-misses. No artistic skills required.

2: Remembering objects

Now, give yourself two minutes to look at the collection of objects. Write down, in any order, as many objects as you can remember in two minutes. You get one point for each correctly recalled item.

3: Learning languages

The next challenge tests your ability to get your head around the unfamiliar. Your task is to learn, in four minutes, 20 Swahili words. Once your time is up, you'll have two minutes to supply the Swahili when prompted with the English. You get one point per correct answer, and half a point for each near-miss.

4: Learning lists

This exercise tests your ability to memorise sequences of events. Between the two world wars, there were 20 winners of the FA Cup – all familiar teams. (You don't need to be into football for this challenge.) You have two minutes to learn the correct chronological sequence of the FA Cup winners, and two minutes to fill in the table on the answers PDF. You get one point for each correct answer and five extra points if you have no interest in football.

5: Integrated memory skills

Your ability to apply all of your visual, associative, verbal and imaginative memory skills will be put to the test in this next challenge. Your job is to learn, in four minutes, the names of the 25 tropical fish. You then have three minutes to fill in the table on the PDF below. You get one point for each corrrectly named fish, and half a point for any near-misses. Go to memrise.com/guardianif you'd like to learn the contents of more Guardian wallcharts (such as cheeses, reptiles and insects etc).